The Buddha of Swat

Mullah Fazlullah may be no more. But the Buddha of Swat that his supporters tried to destroy back in 2007 has now been fully restored. This is to be welcomed. Admittedly, the lengthy process undertaken by Italian archaeologists did not come cheap. Over a five-year period, the Rome government invested some $2.9 million in efforts to preserve this important cultural artefact that effectively belongs to local residents.

Sitting in a lotus position, the statue dates as far back as the seventh century and stands six metres tall. Following the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan by the Afghan Taliban back in 2001 — the Buddha of Swat is now considered one of South Asia’s largest sculptures. Its restoration has been hailed as a powerful symbol of tolerance; proudly borne by a people that have suffered so much at the hands of militants. For many, it represents a commitment to religious pluralism.

Of course, there are those who complain about the vast amount spent on recovering a relic from a past era. Indeed, such concerns partly motivated the Afghan Taliban into blowing up that country’s statues; standing 35 and 53 metres, respectively. Under the guise of protesting idolatry, the militant group was reportedly irked at the international aid tranches exclusively earmarked for cultural heritage preservation. At the time, the then Taliban government was facing global sanctions and children were starving to death.

Notwithstanding many other genuine needs of local populace, the axiom that world heritage sites belong to all of humanity must not be forgotten. This holds especially true for the Buddha of Swat. The Valley had, after all, for centuries been a place of pilgrimage for followers of Buddhism. Indeed, for many it was a “holy land”; from where their faith originated.

If peace building in Swat and adjoining areas succeeds, we hope that this region can transform into a hub of religious tourism. But, perhaps, more than anything the restoration of such a significant statue signals the overwhelming defeat of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the area. Linked to this, as part of the push-back against such a rigid interpretation of Islam, is the simple notion that the displaying of various artefacts associated with different religions in a secure and respectful environment will have a trickle-down effect on local populations that are still recovering from the traumas of militant brutality.

In short, the painstaking restoration of the Buddha of Swat is both an assertion of Pakistan’s hybrid identity, its rich heritage as well as a symbolic defeat of narrow and self-serving readings of majoritarian faith. *